Dark Fire
by Garden-of-Feathers
Summary: After a disaster that destroys her home, a Ninetails named Dahlia is swept into a world of danger, especially when she meets Bandit, a shady and manipulative Houndoom who leads a group of Dark Type Pokemon seeking revenge on a former member of their gang.
1. It Begins

_NOTE: my first story. the title may change cuz i didnt really have a good one in mind... i dont expect this to be very good or very liked but if you dont like it, please dont be mean. i just needed a place to finally get this idea out! comments are appreciated :)_

_Rating: T for possible language and violence._

_- Disclaim: i do NOT own Pokemon. -_

_xxx_

Clouds were heavy and saturated with rain over a dark forest near the summit of Mount Pyre. The mountain was shrouded in mist, like it always was, as night settled in silently.

Beneath one tall pine tree in the middle of the woods, a lovely young Ninetails was hurrying to gather her siblings together to sleep. The six rambunctious Eevee romped about, biting each other's ears and tackling and squeaking happily.

"Settle down!" the Ninetails coaxed, swishing her many silky tails irritably back and forth.

One of her brothers suddenly rolled and nearly knocked her hind feet out from beneath her.

"Nidd, get in the nest!"

Two of the others attempted to start climbing the tree, but the Ninetails tugged them down by their tails.

"Rena, you should know better," she scolded one of her sisters. "Now, all of you, before I have to resort to using a _Flamethrower_."

"You _always_ say that, Dahlia!" whined the second-youngest, a little Eevee boy named Rhodo.

"I mean it this time! Your mother put me in charge before she left, so you need to listen to me. Sleep time—now!"

Groans of disapproval rose from her siblings as they crawled, tails tucked between their legs, into the hole in the tree trunk and curled up amongst each other.

Dahlia shook her head. They weren't her blood-siblings, obviously, but ever since she'd found them struggling for their lives in the desert only a few months back, she couldn't bring herself to leave them on their own until they were old enough. She couldn't consider herself their mother, seeing that she wasn't but two years older than Hallow, the oldest of three years, so she was content with the title of their eldest sister.

"Well," she said, flipping the long crest of fur away from her crimson eyes, "I think you all need a good sleep."

The largest Eevee padded his way to the hole where Dahlia peered in at them. "You promised you'd take us to the very top of the mountain tomorrow."

"It's a long way there, Hallow," she said, and gave his cheek a gentle nuzzle. "You better get some rest if you wanna take that big hike."

He gave her a dismissive look as he turned around. His ears twitched, he glanced around at the other Eevees, then back at his oldest sister. "Where's Tucker?"

Startled, Dahlia's eyes darted from one brown furball to the next. She counted Rena, Nidd, Itasca, Rhodo, Hallow… but Tucker, the youngest, was not among them.

"He's around here somewhere," she said, though uncertain of her words. "You all relax while I go find him. If I come back and any one of you is gone, you'll _all_ be in big trouble." She moved away from the tree and trotted into the woods.

Raising her muzzle to the breeze, she searched for Tucker's scent. He couldn't have gone too far, he was barely four months old, and this wasn't uncommon in the least. Tucker would wander away from the group out of simple curiosity on numerous occasions, but usually he was too tired to attempt an escape before bedtime.

Dahlia called his name across the forest, but the only sound she heard was the chortling of Taillow in the trees and her paws scuffing the soft dirt. Above her thunder growled like an angry Ursaring, and guilt washed over her at the thought of how frightened Tucker or any of the other Eevees would be.

Her sharp eyes caught sight of a sleek brown shape in the darkness up ahead, something no doubt alive and moving. The silence was being broken by a pitiful squeal for help. Squinting, Dahlia saw the unnatural shapes of two misfit Pokémon, a Banette and a Duskull named Midge and Heath, hovering above the cowering form of a juvenile Eevee.

Dahlia was quick to react. She charged forth, bearing flame between her jaws, and leapt at the Duskull, seizing him beneath her strong forelegs.

Heath's glowing red eye shook at the sight of her from beneath his mask. "Oh, crap! Dahlia! We were just-"

"Save it!" she barked, spewing embers from her fangs. "I want you two away from my brother and away from me!"

"Let's book it, man!" yelped Midge, waving his puppet-like arms. "Remember how bad she beat us last time!"

"And I hope it teaches you a lesson!" Dahlia stepped off of Heath with a snort. "You leave my family alone or-" She paused upon catching a whiff of something strange, something she'd never smelled before.

Tucker, who had hurried to seek refuge beneath his sister's belly, sniffed the air as well.

But before she could make any conclusions, the ground began to tremble. It was gentle at first, but soon it became a great quake.

"The mountain's coming alive!" Midge shrieked. "It's the end of the world!" He and Heath vanished into thin air.

The trees were shaking terribly, raining pine needles down on the two fox-like Pokémon below. Tucker called, "What's happening?"

"I'm not sure," replied Dahlia, trying to sound unafraid. "I think something's going on underneath the ground."

The rumbling only became louder and more violent as the mountain's other inhabitants began to scatter. It wasn't long after that there was a massive explosion that knocked Dahlia and her brother clear off all four paws.

Mount Pyre had erupted. While ash plumed from the broken peak, lava began spilling down the sides like hot blazing fudge down a giant ice cream sundae. It washed away the gravestones, flowed over the rock faces, knocked down trees.

Dahlia was frozen in place; she watched almost helplessly as molten rock flowed treacherously toward them. Toward her family.

"Tucker!" she cried. "We have to run!" But knowing he wouldn't be fast enough, she snatched him up gently in her maw by the loose skin on his fluffy neck, and she bolted.

By the time she reached the tree, her legs were aching. She set Tucker down briefly to speak to the frightened Eevees, "We have to get to the water. It's a long way down but it's our only chance!"

"But we can't swim!" whined Itasca.

"We'll think of something once we get there. Let's hurry. The mountain just blew up and lava's coming this way."

Though Dahlia was much faster than her siblings, she kept their pace to guide them. They were halfway down the mountain when Nidd tripped and tumbled with a pained cry.

Dahlia skidded to a stop. "Keep running, all of you!" she told the others, then turned to Nidd, "Can you still run?"

"I got hurt!" he said quietly, raising a wounded paw.

So she picked him up and carried him off in pursuit of her siblings, who had managed to create a good distance between them. It took a long time, but when they finally reached the base of the mountain, all the Eevees collapsed in fatigue.

Now she had to think of a way to get them all across the lake. Even she couldn't swim, so it had to be large enough for her as well, whatever it was.

"Dahlia!"

At the sound of her voice, Dahlia pricked up her ears. Her friend Nada was an older Nidoqueen who didn't show herself much, and here she stood looking frantic.

The Ninetails said, "I need a way to get my brothers and sisters across the lake, out of danger."

"I can take them," Nada told her with a glance back at where the lava had reached. It was well past the mountain's midsection, well past where Dahlia's tree had been. "But what will you do?"

"I'll manage somehow," Dahlia replied.

Nada didn't seem convinced. However, she gathered the exhausted Eevees at her feet and ushered them toward the shore, "Little ones, climb on my back. I'll get you somewhere safe."

Dahlia could only watch her family crawl up between the Nidoqueen's long spikes. Once in place, they gave her a questioning look.

"Go with Auntie Nada," she told her siblings, "I'll be there soon."

Nada looked at her over her shoulder, "You watch yourself, dear." And she waded into the water to begin her swim across the lake.

The air was now filled with smoke and the sound of panicking. All around Dahlia were other terrified Pokémon fleeing the mountain, from Murkrow to Shuppet and many more. Those who couldn't find their way across the water, like some Vulpix and a few Numel, stood hopelessly on the sandy bank.

She hung her head. Not even she could withstand a lava flow. If this was it, she wouldn't be able to watch her young family grow up. Maybe some of them would evolve. Maybe some of them would have trainers. Maybe they would start a family of their own.

_No_, she thought, _I'll be there for all of that. I'll make it._ With renewed determination, she decided she would make an attempt to swim. Perhaps the dangers of water were all mind-induced.

The lava was much closer—it was now or never. She gathered her courage, closed her eyes, took off at a sprint, and just before the water's edge she leapt a great distance away from the shore, so far she was almost flying.

But then she was falling.

The water hit her like a suffocating cloud, and suddenly she found herself surrounded by cold wetness. She didn't know what to do next. Kicking with her hind legs, she sought a way to the air, but she wasn't sure which way that was.

Scared now, she opened her eyes, during which the cold stung them. A dark shape was approaching, something particularly large; she made the mistake of snapping at it. Water filled her mouth, her throat, and she felt the world slip away as the shape seized her by the ears.

xxx

_personally i hate this first chapter but im hoping itll get better. reviews?_


	2. Out of the Water and Into the Dark

_**here's chapter 2! i hope you like it :) here's where things kinda get interesting. i know it moves kinda fast but bear with me, my ideas are slow-moving right now, especially since we just had a funeral :( ... but please, read and review!**_

_What happened?_

Dahlia's eyelids fluttered open to see the dark forest around her. Mist hovered between the treetops, water had pooled beneath her, and the heavy smell of ash and smoke was prominent in the cool air.

When she slowly sat upright, she discovered her pale golden fur was sopping wet. She coughed, trying to get any remaining water out of her throat, but for some reason the water she swallowed seemed to be gone.

"Hello?" she called hoarsely into the woods. "Nada? Tucker? Rena?"

_If there's no one here, how'd I get out of the lake? There's no way I swam here._

Something dark moved in the shadows of the trees, a glint of blood-red shining among the night, a flash of faint silver.

Dahlia's muscles tensed as she jumped to all fours. The tips of her tails were flicking agitatedly, the hair on her back bristling. "Whoever you are, come out!"

While she expected a ghost like Midge or Heath to slither out of the bushes, she found herself unable to speak when the large form of a dog, black as the sky with blazing red eyes and sharp raked silver horns, crept out into where she could see him.

The name left her mouth in a murmur, "A Houndoom…" Suddenly she felt incredibly lost and frightened, but she didn't want the hellhound to know that. "What do you want?" she growled, trying her best at sounding brave.

The Houndoom smirked, a horrific smile that showed a hint of sharp white teeth. "Is that really any way to speak to the one who saved your life?"

"What?" She tilted her head, doubtful. "How could you? You're a Fire Type, just like me. You'd drown."

"So you'd think." The hellhound swished a long demonic tail. "What's your name, sweetheart?"

"Don't call me that," she snapped. "What makes you think I'd trust you with my name?"

"Oh, what's in a name? It's not like you'd be telling me your life's story. No, if I wanted that, I'd have asked for it rather than simply what you call yourself."

The Ninetails straightened her posture a bit, "Dahlia. That's my name."

"I like that," drawled the Houndoom, raising his head proudly. "Now was it really so difficult?"

Dahlia ignored his question and instead asked her own, "And you are?"

"They call me Bandit."

_Suits you_, she thought bitterly. "Where's my family?" she asked.

"Family? I only saved _you_."

"You didn't see a Nidoqueen come through here with a litter of Eevees?"

"I didn't."

Her heart dropped. That meant she was nowhere near them. Where exactly had this stranger brought her?

She glared at Bandit as he snuffled about in the dirt, "Where are we?"

"You ask a lot of questions," he said, raising his head. "If you must know, we're on the north side of the lake, near a human town just east of here."

"Why haven't I seen you before? It's not everyday that a Houndoom comes skulking around these parts."

He smirked again, feigning offense, "Skulking? I'm hurt! I only came around because I heard the mountain explode. And then I saw a certain fire-vixen struggling while submerged in her own weakness."

Dahlia's glare was as fiery as her power. "There's no way you saved me out of sheer goodness."

"There's a lot you don't know about me, Miss." He moved away from her, further into the trees, where he stopped to stare out across the dark forest.

She growled, "I don't trust you."

"I never said you had to," he said, tilting his muzzle in her direction. "But by pulling the right strings, I might be able to help find your precious family."

"You can?" Curious, Dahlia let her guard slightly down. "How could you do that?"

"I have eyes and ears all over this forest. Stick with me, vixen, and you'll be back with your cubs in no time."

Dahlia wasn't sure how to accept this offer. Was this stranger really trying to help her, or was he as cunning as any Houndoom, seeking only personal benefit of some kind? Whatever the case, she was willing to risk anything for her Eevees.

"All right," she agreed, and trotted to his side. "I'll go with. But you better be honest with me, at all times."

"Can do." Bandit cantered gracefully into the trees. "Now hurry. My accomplices are quick travelers at night."

Together they raced through the woods, taking Dahlia farther and farther from where she'd last seen her family. Bandit's pace was swift, his gait elegant and carefree, and he ran with his head proudly held high as though he were parading along a boardwalk.

"So," he said once they'd reduced their motion to a slow trot, "how exactly did a vixen like you end up with a couple of Eevee kids anyway?"

"I adopted them," she answered while catching her breath. "I consider myself their sister rather than mother, though, because… well, mothering isn't something to be taken lightly. I'm nowhere near that stage."

"Hmph," hummed Bandit, who seemed to be listening though was only half-interested.

Abruptly, a tree crashed to the ground ahead of them, causing the two dogs to leap back in alarm. Temporarily dazed, Dahlia shook her head, cleared her vision, and squinted to see what had happened.

Above them towered the massive gray shape of a Rhydon, his eyes glinted in the faint moonlight and his teeth bared.

"You!" he bellowed at Bandit in a voice that shook the earth. "I remember you! Where's the rest of your no-good freaks?"

Dahlia looked quickly to Bandit, who had a morbid smile across his maw. "It's just me, Roderick. Me, myself, and I."

"I know there's someone with you, hell-dog!" snarled the Rhydon, whipping his head sideways, flinging a large string of saliva into a tree trunk. "If you expect me to just let you go this time, you're dead wrong! And by 'dead', I mean it!"

The fire-fox leaned over to Bandit and whispered, "He doesn't know I'm here?"

"Nah," he hissed back, "the old rock's gone blind. He's like the patrol officer of the forest, and he doesn't like me and my buddies hanging around here because he's worried we'll start the place on fire."

Roderick stomped irritably in the grass. "I hear you whispering, mutt! You quit causing trouble or you'll be in the Safari Zone so fast, your horns will spin!"

"On the count of three," murmured Bandit to Dahlia, "go around to his left. I'll take the right. Then run as fast as you can."

Every muscle in her body braced to move. She tensed when Bandit began counting, and the moment he muttered the magic number, she sprinted around the rock-monster's left side.

Roderick continued roaring angrily while they rounded him. His stomping caused such a tremor in the earth that a tree came loose of its roots and toppled down into Bandit's path of escape, halting him in his tracks.

Dahlia whirled around to see him attempting to leap over the trunk just as the Rhydon had turned, reaching a large stone paw out toward him. With no time to think, she jumped, gathered a flame in her throat, and spewed a stream of fire upon Roderick's claw, which caused him to draw back, startled. It gave Bandit just enough time to regain his footing and continue his escape, Dahlia following closely behind him as the sound of Roderick's groaning became fainter with the distance.

"Whoa," breathed the Houndoom after they stopped for breath. "I guess you don't owe me for saving you anymore, do you?"

"No, I guess not." Dahlia sat down and heaved a sigh.

Bandit gave her an admiring look, his crimson eyes gleaming with an indefinable shimmer. "Thanks, vixen."

"I have a name, and you _will_ call me that name. Now, please, are we at least close to wherever it is you're taking me?"

"We are," he replied. "They found us."

"What?"

"Wait for it…"

The woods were still around them. A light breeze swayed the treetops, but other than that silence was as thick as the mist over the lake.

Then from the deeper forest emerged several dark shapes of different random sizes. One of them dashed around to Bandit's side, growling, eyes nearly as red as Bandit's. It was a Mightyena, with a thick bristling coal-black mane and sharp white fangs.

The second shape materialized on the branches above Dahlia's head, a Murkrow with a scar over one piercing crimson eye, glowering down at her.

The third was a smaller shape, but it was unmistakably two-legged with sparkling silver claws and one large red feathery growth on its head—a Sneasel. It appeared in a flash on Bandit's other side, its claws at the ready.

And the fourth was only slightly shorter than Bandit, with abundant snow-white fur and a sharp blade-like protrusion on the side of its head. It was an Absol, but unlike any Dahlia had ever seen—the closer she looked, she noticed a reddish hue to its coat, and instead of blood-red, the eyes were incredibly blue.

Bandit tilted his head to crack his neck. "Vixen, meet my gang. Guys, introduce yourselves."

"Are you sure we can trust her?" hissed the Sneasel, eyes locked on Dahlia with suspicion.

"Positive. Go on, tell her a little bit about yourselves."

The Murkrow fluttered down to be with the others and said, in a low raspy voice, "They call me Cavalier, soldier of the night sky."

Before Dahlia could respond, the Mightyena spoke, sounding rather juvenile, boyish, "I'm Wolver. I'm not as small as I look."

The Sneasel's glare was as cold as the ice it could wield. "Slash," said the unmistakably female voice, and that was all she said.

Finally Dahlia looked to the oddly-colored Absol, who raised a ravishing head to say, "I am Abel, the leader of this group. Welcome, Ninetails—you are the first non-Dark Pokemon to ever willingly set foot in the realm of the Shades."

"The Shades?" she repeated, incredulous.

Bandit smirked at her again, fiendishly. He restrained no conceit in his voice as he met her delirious gaze. "That's us, Vixen."


End file.
